When We Were Young
by momoxtoshiro
Summary: "Ah- aaaah, oh gosh oooh my gosh y-you're crying-!" Ruby panicked and quickly threw her backpack off of her shoulders, diving into the front zipper to find the band-aids Yang had given her. But Weiss wiped her face and shook the wood chips out of her hair. "I am not crying," she said loudly. "A Schnee never cries. That's what Papa always says." [Happy RWBY Tuesday!]
1. Chapter 1

**Hello, all! I'd like to welcome you to a very special fanfic: my 100th RWBY fic! Not including the stories I've written about OCs, this is my 100th RWBY fic, and I wanted to make it a special one. ****It's also dedicated to Xenon for a wonderful art/story trade she's choosing to do with me!**

**I hope you can all enjoy it! Thanks for keeping up with my stories and letting me get this far!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

* * *

When We Were Young

Chapter 1.

At the age of six years old, Ruby Rose liked to think she had a good life.

Even though she had lost her mother at a rather young age, she had never gotten the chance to know her that well, so the pain that accompanied the loss was bearable, especially with her older half-sister Yang in the picture.

Even though Yang was only two years older than Ruby, she had already taught her so many things: how to disinfect a cut, how to make a blanket-and-pillow fort, what kind of teary face to make at the teacher if Ruby was ever about to be given a penalty...

The list went on and on, but perhaps the thing she head learned from Yang that had benefitted her most of all was how to talk to people her own age.

Talking to adults was easy; she didn't have much choice in the matter anyway, since she had to listen to them every day of her life and always give a proper response to prove she had heard them. But to talk to children her own age had been difficult for Ruby, until Yang had come along.

Thankfully, as things were now, Ruby was friends with almost all of her classmates at Vale's elementary school. Yang attended the same school, though she was in a class for the older kids, but it was still nice that Ruby got to walk with her to school every day.

It was when Yang graduated and needed to change schools a little while later when Ruby clung to her and cried that she was no longer going to have anyone to walk to school with.

"A-All my friends live in different directions, and no one would w-wanna walk back all the way here with me every day!" she wailed. "I don't wanna walk by myself, Yang!"

"You'll be fine, Ruby!" Yang patted her head and locked her arms around her shoulders, giving a tight squeeze. "You're a big girl now! Plus, there's all those nice policemen on the way to school to keep you safe. Nothin' to worry about."

"W-Well, yeah but..." Ruby hid her face in her sister's shoulder. "They're older guys and they won't walk with me and talk to me like you do. I don't think I can hold their hands, either."

"Mm, maybe not," Yang mumbled. "But at least you know you'll be safe, even if you _are_ a little lonely."

"But I don't _wanna_ be lonely!" she wailed in protest.

"Shh, hey hey." Yang ruffled her hair again. "Didn't you hear about that new family moving in? They're a couple blocks away but I heard they have a daughter! Maybe she'll be in your class or something!"

Ruby lifted a face smeared with tears and other fluids and sniffled.

"You... You really think so?"

"Ruby, I'm the big sister. I _know_ so!"

Her little sister's eyes brightened, and even if Yang had been lying, it would have been worth it to see that reaction.

"Thank you, Yang!" Ruby finally returned the hug, and Yang sighed with relief. Obviously, she had just been listening to the talk of the town a bit more closely than Ruby. After all, as the big sister, Yang needed to know the going-ons of the neighborhood.

There was indeed a new family moving in a few blocks away, but they weren't very... normal.

The name Schnee had been famous for a while, but only if you listened to the news a lot, Yang had found.

Apparently, they weren't a family you had dinner with on holiday evenings because they were your neighbors. They weren't a family you could go to the beach with for a weekend. They kept to themselves and were very _aloof_, and their only daughter was the very definition of the word.

Yang just hoped all the things she had ever taught Ruby about making friends would continue to pay off.

* * *

The family moved in down the street as planned several blocks away from where Ruby and Yang lived.

It was a quick and quiet process, and it was almost like they had lived there the whole time, Ruby felt.

The first morning when school started up again that year, she was bouncing on her heels nervously by the front door as she waited to leave. Having already said goodbye to their father who had to leave for work even earlier than they left for school, Ruby was clinging to her sister once more.

"Yaaaang, I'm scared. I don't wanna walk to school by myseeelf..."

"I told you, Ruby. Even if the other kids won't walk with you, the policemen will be there!"

"Yang!"

"Look, I know it's not what you wanted exactly, but it's better than nothin'! Plus, maybe that new girl will walk with you! You should wait a few minutes and see if she comes down the sidewalk from here. I'm sure _she_ doesn't wanna be alone when she walks either, ya know." She pulled away and looked down into Ruby's silver eyes. "You'll be fine, Ruby. I gotta go catch my bus now. Be sure to tell me all about it when you get home, okay?"

Ruby bit her lower lip to stop it from trembling as she nodded. The kiss Yang pressed to her forehead made her feel a bit better, and she watched her older sister head out the door.

Yang's new school was far enough away that she had to take the bus, and thinking about it made Ruby uneasy all over again.

_I don't wanna be alone..._

When it was time for her to get going, she was sure to lock the door behind her responsibly; it was the first time she was the last one to leave the house, and she took the job very seriously.

When she finished and stepped outside, the morning sunlight was warm on her skin, and she adjusted the straps of her red backpack on her shoulders as she headed for the sidewalk. She paused for a few moments to look in the opposite direction from the path to school, hoping to see a girl her age starting to make her way down the sidewalk.

The new house was just barely visible in the distance past some big trees of the neighbor's lawn. Ruby saw a large car in the driveway, and from what she could tell, people were getting inside of it when the lights came on. Dismay made her shoulders drop as she realized the girl who went to her school was probably being driven there.

_I guess it's no surprise, though. Since they have such a big house and a big car, I guess they must have big wallets, too..._

"But I don't wanna be alone..." Ruby mumbled again.

And she knew no one could hear her.

She turned away and began heading for the elementary school, more than aware when the big car she had just seen in the driveway passed her.

But not even the nice policemen who said hello to her could make her nervousness go away, and Ruby walked to school that morning with tears dripping down her face.

* * *

Once she finally arrived - after having ran the last few blocks because a big, mean-looking dog had been barking at her from its garden - Ruby wiped her face on her sleeve.

She tried to straighten her back; it was the first day of school, after all.

All of the students were to report to the gym this morning and find the number on the wall that matched their new classroom that the paper in the mail had told them. Ruby knew the drill since she had done this once before, only she had been together with Yang...

As she passed by the main office, Ruby couldn't help but notice a tall man standing in front of the secretary's desk. He wore a grey suit and held his hands behind his back very properly, and when Ruby looked closely, she could just make out the shape of a snowflake on his back.

She briefly remembered seeing that symbol on the car she had seen that morning, and put two and two together.

Being as quiet as possible so no one would notice her, she tiptoed down that hallway to get a better look. When she peeked at an angle that let her see around the tall man, a smile curled Ruby's lips.

There was a little girl holding his hand tightly with both of hers, and it was clear how nervous she was, though the way she tried to puff out her chest and straighten her back and shoulders suggested she was trying to appear not-so-nervous.

She had hair that was white like freshly-fallen snow – that was the first thing that came to Ruby's mind. It was all the way down to her back, a very rare sight to behold, since most of the girls – Ruby herself included – had just gotten to the age where they wanted to cut all of their hair off to look more mature.

The new girl wore a light blue dress, and overall, Ruby felt just _looking_ at this girl made her cold. The same snowflake shape on her father's suit was on the back of her dress as well, along with the side of her blue backpack.

Ruby stayed where she was, trying to get a look at the girl's face as her father continued to talk with the people at the office.

It was a few minutes later when they finally finished talking, and the man knelt down in front of his daughter. She threw her arms around his neck and appeared to be shaking, and Ruby's heart went out to her.

It was probably that very moment when she decided; she was going to be friends with this girl.

Ruby ducked behind the corner as she waited for things to finish up. The man kissed his daughter's head before saying a few more things to her and standing up. He walked with her out of the office where he headed for the exit doors; it really hurt Ruby to watch the girl's hand slip out of his.

Ruby felt tears brimming in her eyes as the white-haired girl watched her father go, her hands still outstretched toward his back. He turned and smiled and waved at her, but all she could manage was a weak curling of her fingers in return.

When at last her father had disappeared, Ruby was wiping the tears from her own eyes.

The other girl turned around and began walking toward her, not knowing Ruby was there as she mumbled to herself.

"Papa said I've got to go to the gymnasium. It should be down... this way?"

Just as she peeked around the corner, Ruby put on a toothy grin.

"Hiya!"

"Eep!"

The white-haired girl stumbled back in surprise, falling onto her backside on the floor. Her eyes were squeezed shut from the pain of the fall, but Ruby could see there really were tears on her lashes now.

"Waaaah! I'm sorry, I'm sorryyy!" Ruby quickly reached down her hand; she wanted to help the girl up herself, but Yang had taught her never to touch another person without their permission. "I'm really, _really_ sorry!" she cried again. "I didn't mean to scare you, I really didn't! I wasn't trying to be mean or anything, I just wanted to say hi because I know you're new here and you looked kinda nervous and I'm kinda nervous too b-but I don't want you to be nervous cause that's not a nice feeling and oh gosh are you okay? Does it hurt somewhere? I can take you to the nurse-"

Her motormouth speech died down when the other girl blinked her eyes back open.

They were such a pretty blue, like the sky after a light rain in the summertime, or after a snowstorm in the winter. It made Ruby forget how to talk for a minute.

The other girl looked up at her in confusion, and even a little bit of fear, and Ruby thought she was about to jump up and run off after her father. Wanting to prevent that from happening, Ruby lowered her voice.

"H-Hi. My name's Ruby. What's yours?"

The girl looked at the hand Ruby offered to her like Ruby would look at a cookie Yang had brought home for her, not sure if it was full of yummy chocolate chips or yucky raisins.

But still, the girl reached her hand up slowly and took Ruby's, maybe because she wanted to trust her or maybe just because she needed help getting up.

Ruby liked to believe it was the first one.

She pulled the girl to her feet, still mesmerized by her blue eyes.

"Weiss," came the voice, small even though her eyes looked angry, and all Ruby could think of was that she was like a small animal who was scared but still trying to make itself look bigger.

Ruby didn't want Weiss to be scared of her, so she smiled again, letting go of her hand willingly when Weiss pulled away.

"It's a really pretty name! I like it!"

The other girl's eyes flicked about quickly, as though she was trying to find an escape.

"I've got to go to the gymnasium," she said quickly.

Ruby thought it was funny she used the full word for "gymnasium" because only the teachers and grown-ups ever called it that.

"I can take you there!" Ruby offered. "I've gotta go there, too! We all do so we can get our classes. Come on, follow me!" She turned around and started scampering down the hall, only to realize Weiss wasn't following her. "I'm telling the truth!" she said, going back to her.

Weiss was looking back toward the exit doors, hands clutching the ends of her dress. Ruby knew she wanted to find her father; she herself knew how scary it was being alone on the first day of school, but for Weiss who had recently moved to this new town, it must have been even scarier.

Ruby knew she wasn't supposed to touch people without their permission, but just this once, she thought it would be okay to take Weiss' hand.

It was shaking a little, just like she had thought.

"Your daddy seems really nice," she said softly.

Weiss hardly even noticed that Ruby was holding her hand now; it felt so natural and safe she didn't even question it.

"Yes. He is. I just want to go home..."

Ruby squeezed her hand a little tighter.

"It's okay! Since it's the first day of school, all we do is go to our classes and then introduce ourselves and then we get to go home early! It won't be so bad."

Weiss finally tore her gaze from the doors and looked uncertainly back to Ruby. The brunette squeezed Weiss' hand again with a smile.

"I promise I'm not lying to you, okay? I don't lie, _especially_ not to my friends."

"Friends...?" Weiss repeated the word in a delicate voice and Ruby nodded happily. Then, Weiss turned her face away and puffed out her cheeks. "I never said we were friends," she muttered.

Ruby's shoulders slumped a little until she realized Weiss' cheeks were pink.

"Well yeah, not _yet!_" She swung Weiss' hand in hers. "But we can be future friends, can't we? We're 'to-be' friends! Maybe not today or tomorrow or next week, but sometime in the future we will be!"

Weiss still refused to look at her.

"Hmph. We'll see about that..."

It wasn't a refusal of her offer of friendship, and that was good enough for Ruby.

"Okay!" she chirped in excitement. "Come on then, I'll take you to the gym!"

As she tugged her along, Weiss finally turned her eyes forward to look at the girl's back.

And slowly, she squeezed her hand in return.

* * *

As Ruby was led to her classroom with her new teacher and fellow classmates, she kept casting glances all around the hallways.

Weiss had parted from her shortly after they had arrived in the gymnasium, having quickly found the number of her class on the wall. Ruby hadn't wanted to leave her alone, but Weiss' teacher had been looking for her. It was with a pout that Ruby had left Weiss there; she was upset that Weiss wasn't in the same class as her.

Ruby mulled through the rest of the short day, got to know her new classmates and introduced herself to them with a smile. She talked to them and made jokes as Yang had taught her to, but there was only one person Ruby really wanted to talk with.

Luckily for her, right after lunch was over, they were dismissed, and Ruby grabbed her backpack and rushed down the halls toward the exit, eyes searching the groups of children as they filed out.

It wasn't too hard to find Weiss; her snow-white hair stood out amongst everyone else's.

She was being jostled around a bit by the kids eager to get out of the building, and Ruby hurried over to her before she could get pushed over. Ruby tapped her shoulder with a cheerful call of her name.

"Weiss!"

"R-Ruby-?!" The white-haired jumped in surprise and spun around. A boy running past knocked into her shoulder, and Ruby quickly wrapped her arms around Weiss to stop her from falling.

"Geez, watch it!" Ruby called after the boy before holding Weiss up. "You okay?"

"I'm fine!" Weiss pushed her away and turned around quickly, and Ruby saw that her cheeks were pink again.

"I'm glad!" She reached down to take Weiss' hand again. She liked holding her hand, and she hoped Weiss did, too. "So um... are you being driven home? You live close by me and I saw your car driving here this morning."

"Oh-" Weiss was the one who paused this time. "I don't think Papa knows it was a half-day today. I don't think... anyone's here to drive me home..."

Ruby could tell right away that Weiss was upset and very nervous about having to walk all the way home. She curled her fingers through Weiss' reassuringly.

"It's okay! Don't worry, I'll walk home with you! Like I said, I live near you! And this'll be better than having to go to the office and have them call home for someone to come get you."

Weiss looked up at her worriedly, but Ruby only grinned back and went on:

"I know it'd be scary to walk back alone. But since my sister graduated, I've gotta be alone when I walk, too. So it's better if we walk together! It's no fun being alone. Plus..." she paused, kicking a pebble across the sidewalk. "I kinda wanna... talk to you some more."

Weiss was silent for a minute, and Ruby shuffled her feet in place as she waited for a reply.

Then, she felt the tug on her wrist as Weiss started walking.

"Well, I guess we don't have any choice," she huffed.

Ruby almost jumped up and down in delight.

"Yaaay! Oh boy! Um, okay s-so how was your first day? Was everyone nice to you here? It stinks that we aren't in the same class..." she moped as they started down the sidewalk.

"Well, of_ course_ we aren't," Weiss mumbled. "I'm older than you."

Ruby stopped in her tracks. "Wait, what?"

"Yes!" Weiss rolled her eyes. "You didn't realize which classroom I went to? I'm in the year above you."

"Whaaaat?!" Ruby's eyes were wide in surprise. "But you're the same size as me! Actually, maybe you're a little shorter- ow!"

Weiss had stepped on her shoe.

"Hush!" she cried loudly. "Gosh, do you even think before you speak?"

"Sorry!" Ruby offered a sheepish apology as they continued to walk, passing each house slowly. "So... you said you're older than me, huh? By how much?"

"Actually, I'm _supposed_ to be in my first year of middle school, but-"

"What?! You're as old as Yang?"

"Pardon?"

"Oh, Yang's my older sister! I used to walk to school with her all the time, but she just graduated last year and moved up to the middle school. So now I'm alone here – or at least, I thought I would be!" Again, she smiled widely at Weiss, and again the other girl puffed out her cheeks and looked away. Ruby swung their hands back and forth between them, and Weiss let her without complaining.

"So why are you in this school, then?" Ruby wondered.

"When we moved, my papers got mixed up. Papa tried to get everything sorted out with the school, but by that time it was already too late. So now I've got to retake this level of classes again in this town. But next year it's already been arranged that I'll be skipping ahead to the right class."

"So that means you're gonna be with me all this year!"

Weiss gave a small grunt.

"Oh wow, that's great! That's so exciting! I can't wait! Even if you're in a different class, we can still walk-" Ruby stopped herself and her smile dropped. "Oh yeah. I guess this is the only time we can walk together cause you'd be driven..." She sighed, but perked up a minute later when she got an idea. "If it's gonna be that way, then come with me! I wanna take you somewhere!"

"Ruby-!"

"It's fine! It's only a minute off the path and it's still close to our houses! Plus, you don't really need to be home for another few hours, right?"

Weiss gave a tiny, hesitant nod.

"Then come on, follow me!"

Ruby took off – surprisingly quickly – as she held tightly to Weiss' hand. The older girl stumbled before she was forced to run after her. She tried to keep an eye on her surroundings so she could recognize things better. Ruby veered down a small street off the main path home, and Weiss struggled to keep up with her.

"H-How do you run so fast?"

"I dunno! Yang says I've always been a quick runner! C'mon, we're almost there!"

With a few more sprints, Ruby came to a halt, Weiss panting behind her.

They were at a small playground, wood chips beneath their shoes now as Ruby brought them over to the swings. There were a few slides and a jungle gym as well, along with a bench off to one side.

"A playground?" Weiss observed. "But we have one at school."

"Well yeah, but this one's private! It's in a weird spot so not a lot of people come here. Yang and I used to come by on the way home from school or on weekends, but... I guess she can't come with me that much anymore. She's gonna have a lot more homework to do now." She looked back to Weiss. "And since this will probably be the only day you walk home, I wanted to show it to you! Wanna play a bit? The policemen know that some kids walk home so there are a lot of them keeping watch to keep us safe. Whaddaya say?"

She looked hopefully into Weiss' eyes, and the older girl seemed to have trouble looking back at her. Her blue eyes kept flicking around nervously, as if she wasn't supposed to be here or was scared she would get scolded.

Ruby's shoulder slouched again. "Are you not allowed to? Will your Mom or Dad get mad at you?"

"No..." Weiss murmured. "It's not that they'll get mad. I just... I've never been to a playground like this before, one that's not on school grounds..."

The smile returned to Ruby's lips again when she realized Weiss wouldn't get in trouble if she came to play now.

"Well there's a first time for everything!" She tugged Weiss again, but still the girl didn't move.

"But... I'm in a dress..."

Ruby blinked and stared back at her.

Then, she burst out laughing.

"Wha-?!" Weiss stomped her foot, her cheeks bright red. "D-Don't laugh, you... you _dolt!_"

"Sorry, sorry!" Ruby covered her mouth. "It's just... heehee of all the things to worry about- pfff-"

"Don't laugh!" Weiss yelled again.

"Can't catch me!"

"Ruby!"

The younger girl took off toward the playground, Weiss tearing after her, instantly being reminded just how fast Ruby was.

Ruby led her up the colorful steps of the main structure, dashing over the rickety bridge with ease. Weiss halted immediately at the edge, stepping one foot at a time over each swaying plank carefully. Ruby's lips curved into a devilish smile, knowing there was only one thing she could do.

She jumped onto the other end of the bridge with both feet, causing it to lurch beneath the other girl. Weiss shrieked and clung to the side as Ruby doubled over with laughter.

"W-Why you-!" Weiss charged at her again, and Ruby quickly scrambled toward the entrance to the nearest slide and slipped down, sending a scatter of wood chips up in her wake as she landed.

Weiss paused at the top, staring down uncertainly, her hair frazzled as she glared down at Ruby.

"Weiss, it's okay~! Just sliiide!"

Weiss huffed and blew her bangs out of her face as she sat down, gathering her dress securely in her fingers as she bumpily slid down the length of the slide.

"Yeah, yeah! See? That wasn't so bad, was it?"

"Ruby-"

"Oh geez-"

The brunette tore off again, this time for the monkey bars. She came to this playground all the time, so she was used to climbing them.

Making sure her feet didn't dangle down so Weiss could grab her, Ruby pulled herself up onto the very top of them so she was a good six feet off the ground. Weiss circled beneath her like a hungry tiger.

"No fair! I can't reach them!"

"Cause you're so tinyyyy~!"

"_Ruby_-!"

"Eek!"

Ruby was able to avoid her for a few minutes until Weiss actually started making efforts to climb the bars, even though she was wearing a dress.

Eventually, Ruby hopped down and ran toward the spherical jungle gym and began climbing quickly. Weiss groaned and rushed to catch her, trying to get her footing and balance right on the strange contraption.

"If you can tag me, you win!" Ruby called down.

"Ugh, I'm going to-"

With another huff, Weiss tried to climb to the next curved bar. But her foot slipped and she lost her grip, falling through the bars with a short cry before landing on her side on the ground.

"Weiss!" Ruby gasped and quickly jumped down to get to her. "Are you okay? Does it hurt?"

"Ow..." Weiss sniffled and pushed herself up, and Ruby reached out to help her. She instantly noticed a single drop of water trailing down Weiss' cheek.

"Ah- aaaah, oh gosh oooh my gosh y-you're crying-!" Ruby panicked and quickly threw her backpack off of her shoulders, diving into the front zipper to find the band-aids Yang had given her.

But Weiss wiped her face and shook the wood chips out of her hair.

"I am _not_ crying," she said loudly. "A Schnee never cries. That's what Papa always says."

"You were definitely crying!"

"Was _not!_"

"Were _too!_" Ruby smooshed her index finger against Weiss' lips to stop her from saying any more, and the girl swatted her hand away with a grunt. Ruby pulled out a band-aid and a disinfectant wipe from a small package she had with her as she looked into Weiss' eyes. "Okay, it doesn't matter if you cried or not, but you're hurt! Let me see your arm."

Weiss looked down at her left arm that Ruby had reached for, finding a long red scrap down her forearm.

"It's fine-"

"Weiss, no it's not! It's bleeding and it might get infected!" Ruby took her arm gently with her right hand and pinched the wipe in her left. "This is gonna sting a little, okay?"

Weiss squeezed her eyes shut and made a small whimper, but the pain was gone soon enough when Ruby stuck the band-aid over the scratch.

"Um- uhhm-!"

Then, Ruby leaned down and kissed softly over the covered cut.

Weiss' eyes doubled in size, and both girls' faces turned red when their gazes met again.

"W-What was that for?" Weiss asked, pulling her arm back to her chest.

"S-Sorry!" Ruby piped, bowing her head. "I-It's just that _I'm_ usually the one getting hurt and then Yang has to take care of me and she's the one who taught me how to take care of cuts like this a-and she usually kisses it at the end to make it heal faster and I'm sorry I didn't think-"

"Okay, okay!" Weiss did her favorite thing and huffed, dusting off her dress and ponytail as she got to her feet.

Ruby packed up her supplies neatly, relieved that Weiss wasn't hurt badly. She then looked up at the white-haired girl guiltily.

"I'm really, really sorry, Weiss! This happened be-because I-"

"Thank you."

"...Huh?"

"You heard me..." Weiss offered the girl her hand Ruby accepted it slowly as she was pulled to her feet. "You did something nice for me, so it's only right that I say thank you, isn't it? Now why do _you_ look like _you're_ about to cry?"

"Huh?" Ruby realized Weiss was right and her nose was starting to run. "W-Well I was just scared you were gonna be mad at me and then you wouldn't wanna come play with me anymore ever again-"

"Gosh, running isn't the only thing you do quickly."

"W-What..." Ruby shook her head and buried her face in her sleeve for a minute. When she looked up again, Weiss was still holding her hand, waiting patiently. Ruby sniffed one more time, looking at her with upturned eyes. "Do you... do you just wanna go home? I understand if-"

"I think I want to go to the swings." Weiss said loudly. Without waiting for an answer, she pulled Ruby over to them. "Here. Have a seat."

"Wait, Weiss-"

"Up you go!" Weiss circled around behind the younger girl and placed her hands on Ruby's hips. She walked back a few steps before pushing her forward.

"Weeeiss!" Ruby's voice rose into a high-pitched giggle as the wind whipped past her face and through her hair.

Each time she came back down, Weiss was there to push her back up, again and again and again. Ruby laughed louder every time, squealing when she got to the highest point the swing would carry her to.

Once she happily told Weiss she wanted to stop, the older girl helped her slow down enough until Ruby felt brave enough to jump off from a few feet high.

"Ruby!" Weiss gasped. "Don't do that when you're still so high up-"

"Your turn!" Ruby spun back around and scurried over to Weiss.

"Hold on now-"

"Your tuuuurn! Hang on tight-"

"Ru-_by_!" Weiss shrieked as she was pushed lightly down into the seat and Ruby zipped behind her. She placed her hands on Weiss' shoulders and gave a gentle shove.

"I won't push too hard, don't worry~"

"Y-You'd better not!"

"I wooon't~"

Weiss clung tightly to the chains of the swing as she felt herself being lifted, climbing higher and higher into the air with every light push Ruby gave to her back.

The first couple of times, she was nervous and wanted to ask Ruby to be let down.

But just before Weiss could break and ask to stop, she started getting accustomed to the motions. Her ponytail swung back and forth in time with the wind, legs curling naturally at her knees, and Ruby's gleeful laughter reached her ears every time.

Weiss eventually cracked a smile as well.

"Do you wanna go higher?" The younger girl called up to her.

It took Weiss a few more swings before she finally gave a reply.

"Yeah..."

"Okay!" Ruby was glad her friend was being honest and opening up a little more.

She gave a bit of a harder push to Weiss' back each time from then on, sending Weiss to heights she never knew possible without the use of one of her family's personal Air Ships. She felt like she was on top of the world.

After a few more minutes, Ruby helped to slow her down until the swing had stopped, and she took Weiss' hand and helped her up, knowing it was a little tough to stand right after getting off the swings. She wrapped her arms around Weiss contentedly and squeezed.

"Heehee, Weiss, your heart's thumping like a bunny rabbit! You okay?"

She felt Weiss' hands slip around her shoulders.

"Y-Yes... that was just... really exciting. I've never felt that way before."

"Well, I'm glad you had fun!" She let Weiss go, though she kept hold of her hand. She looked up to the big clock that looked over the playground and sighed happily. "We should probably head home now," she offered.

Weiss said nothing, only nodded in response, and followed Ruby off the playground and gradually back to the sidewalk that led back to their houses.

When they reached Ruby's place, the younger girl paused, and Weiss peeked curiously over her shoulder.

"Is this your house?"

"Yeah," Ruby confirmed. "But... yours is a little farther down, and I don't want you to have to walk there alone. So I'll walk you there and then come back!"

"You don't have to-"

"Come on, I wanna walk you home!" She tugged Weiss' hand and continued leading her down the sidewalk.

They passed several more houses until they finally reached the big white one Ruby had seen only from a distance for the past few weeks.

It was really big, and the driveway had a garage with an expensive-looking car inside, and space for another few cars beside it. The lawn was twice the size of Ruby's house's, and a tall white fence rose up behind dozens of flower bushes. There was a gardener watering the plants and another person mowing the lawn, and Ruby wondered if all of these people lived with Weiss and her parents.

The man watering the flowers noticed them and bowed his head before going to the door and disappearing inside. The two girls went up the steps to the door just as it opened.

A woman with shoulder-length white hair and dark blue eyes stood before them, and Weiss let go of Ruby's hand to run to her happily.

"Mama!"

"Weiss! Welcome home, honey!" The woman knelt down as her daughter threw her arms around her neck. "I heard you got let out of school early, so I left work early too and was just about to come home to see you. How was it?" She looked over Weiss' shoulder and smiled kindly at Ruby. "I see you made a friend."

"Hello!" Ruby waved and grinned widely. The woman waved back.

"Thank you for walking Weiss home. She doesn't like to be alone."

"I don't either." Ruby kicked one foot shyly. "But I really like Weiss! We went to the playground together!"

"Is that so?"

"Yeah!" Ruby laughed as the woman stood up again with Weiss holding onto her dress.

"Weiss, honey. Who's your new friend?"

The girl looked up to her and smiled a little.

"Ruby."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Ruby. I hope you and Weiss can get along all year in school together. Do you need someone to take you home?"

"Nope! I'm fine! I live a few houses away! I can run fast!"

"I see." The woman chuckled, putting a hand on her daughter's shoulder. "Come on then, Weiss. Papa's not home yet, but we can start dinner."

Weiss nodded.

She was about to follow her mother inside when she paused and looked back over her shoulder at the brown-haired girl watching her. Weiss let go of her mother's hand briefly and ran back to Ruby to wrap her in a tight hug. Surprised, the younger girl returned the hug with a giggle.

"Thank you, Ruby," Weiss murmured. "I was scared at first, but after I met you... I had a lot of fun today."

"Me, too! It was really, really fun!"

The two girls parted, one smile wide and the other soft.

Then, Weiss turned around and went back to her mother's side, casting one last glance over her shoulder at the girl.

"Bye, Ruby. I'll see you tomorrow."

Ruby waved goodbye, still grinning toothily.

"Yeah! Bye, Weiss!"

Once the door had closed with Weiss behind it, Ruby's shoulders slumped again.

She knew she wouldn't be able to walk to or from school with Weiss anymore.

Turning away, she ran off toward home, a little sad, but mostly happy as she remembered the fun day she had had.

* * *

**A/N: This is a two-shot, so the majority of events will be happening in next week's chapter!**

**Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Ahhh not everyone read the Author's Notes ;~; I said there'd be a chapter 2 ahaha. Well, if you managed to find this chapter, then enjoy!**

**A/N: Still not sure about Ruby and Yang's father or uncle at this point, so I just stuck with uncle.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

* * *

Chapter 2.

The next day, Ruby hugged Yang tightly before the older of the sisters left for school.

Ruby had talked to her about her first day of school all evening the night before, telling Yang everything about Weiss and then some.

"She sounds great, Ruby! I'm glad you made a friend!"

Ruby told her how Weiss' papers had gotten mixed up with the schools and that she would probably be moved up to Yang's grade the next year. Which was why Yang had told her, "Then you gotta have as much fun with her now as possible!"

And Ruby planned to do just that.

That morning, she bounded down the sidewalk, sometimes looking to the street side to see if she could find Weiss' family car and maybe wave to her. But Ruby got almost halfway to the school and didn't see the car.

She was almost getting worried when she suddenly heard footsteps running up from behind her.

"Ruby!"

She spun around with a huge smile on her face when she saw Weiss running toward her. The other girl stopped a few feet away, hands on her knees as she caught her breath.

"You... You weren't going to wait for me, you dolt?"

"Weeeeeiss!" Ruby rushed to her and pulled her into a big hug, nuzzling her cheek to Weiss' like an excited puppy.

Once Weiss could finally get the girl off of her, she told Ruby how she had talked to her father and mother the night before. When they had heard the path to school wasn't far for Weiss, and that there were policemen keeping watch, as well as the fact that she would have Ruby with her, they decided to agree to let her walk to and from school every day.

Ruby listened to her story and jumped up and down all the while. "Wow! Ohmigosh, Weiss that's so great! I'm so happy!" She hugged her again, and even managed to lift Weiss' feet off the ground for a second, making her squeak.

Of course Ruby was happy they could be together from now on, but what made her even _happier_ was the fact that Weiss had specifically asked her parents to let her walk every day so she could be with Ruby.

Weiss would never admit it out loud, but Ruby knew by the way the older girl rolled her eyes and smiled at her that had been the case.

School wasn't as bad as Ruby thought it would be with Weiss walking with her to and from every day. She was on good terms with all of the other kids in her class so she was never lonely like she had first feared she would be. She even found Weiss in the cafeteria the first day they had lunch, and rushed over to hug her again.

They would meet up there every day as well, showing what their parents had packed them for lunch or standing on line together with a few lien to buy snacks.

The first day they sold cookies, Ruby didn't have any money with her and had almost started crying before Weiss had taken her arm and all but dragged her to the line to demand she pick out a cookie, saying her father always gave her a little extra money. She was glad she could finally spend it on someone other than herself.

She bought Ruby two cookies that day, and the younger girl actually started crying that time as she threw her arms around Weiss and thanked her close to a million times.

Before long, Weiss made it a habit to buy cookies for Ruby, and in turn Ruby would buy Weiss her drink that day. They spent the same amount of lien on each other as they would on their own things; they just liked buying for their friend more.

Every afternoon, they walked home together. Ruby always brought Weiss to her house, occasionally getting to see the girl's mother or father and say hello before dashing a few houses down and returning home.

There, she would recount to Yang all that she had done in school that day, whether her sister asked her about it or not. But even if Yang was in a bad mood from her own day at school, hearing Ruby happily talking about Weiss would always bring a smile to both of their faces.

Some days, Ruby would take Weiss to the park, but it was the days Weiss specifically _asked_ to be taken there that were the most fun.

Ruby was comfortable around Weiss, and she wanted Weiss to feel the same way with her.

As the weeks went on, she felt she got the white-haired girl to open up bit by bit, just a little more each day.

Weeks passed, and then months.

And for a while, everything was wonderful.

* * *

It was a normal day at school, and Ruby had been twirling her pencil on her desk, waiting eagerly for the lunch bell to ring.

She had brought a special snack from home that she wanted to share with Weiss. It was a specially-made cupcake, and Ruby had asked Yang to help her make two of them.

Ruby ate one to make sure it was okay, and in the end, she thought it was pretty good. So she had packed up the other one for Weiss and bounded eagerly to school alongside her that morning, grinning widely enough about her little surprise that Weiss needed to ask what she was hiding, to which Ruby had simply shaken her head.

But when the lunch bell finally rang and Ruby ran out of her classroom and down the halls, Weiss wasn't waiting for her in the cafeteria like she usually was. She was always sure to tell Ruby if she knew she would be late, which wasn't often, but she had said nothing to Ruby today.

Not wanting to start eating without her friend, Ruby sat at their usual table and spun her lunch box around a few times as she waited.

It was when lunchtime was half over when she started to get worried and got up to scurry over to one of the teachers to see if she knew anything about where Weiss was.

The lady blinked down at Ruby past her glasses and her eyes widened.

"Oh, you must be Ruby!" she said, kneeling down. "Yes, your friend got called out of class a few hours ago. There was something going on at home and she needed to leave for the day. Someone came to pick her up. She did ask me to tell you. I'm glad we found each other."

"Something happened?" Ruby repeated, clutching her lunchbox.

The teacher put a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sure she'll be back again tomorrow and you two can talk." She smiled kindly. "But for now, you should eat your lunch."

"...Okay." Ruby gave a nod, though she didn't smile as she turned and walked back to her table. It didn't feel right to eat without Weiss next to her, and her tummy kept flipping over.

She slowly chewed through her peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich and drank her milk, but she didn't eat any sweets that day.

When lunch was over, she packed Weiss' cupcake away again and went back to her classroom, and the frown didn't leave her face for the rest of the day.

When the day was over, Ruby walked home slowly, hands clutching the straps of her backpack tightly.

The neighborhood seemed... louder that day.

There were a lot of cars driving by, and she thought she could hear sirens in the distance.

That was what made her hurry home, pausing at the edge of her lawn to look down to Weiss' house, wanting to go there more than anything. But she could see there were cars in the driveway, which was unusual for this hour of the afternoon, and she didn't want to go there if something important was happening.

So Ruby turned and headed into her own house.

When Yang got home, she asked her to help dial the phone so she could at least call Weiss, but no one answered.

"I'm sure it's fine, Ruby." Yang wrapped her in a warm hug. "It'll be okay."

And yet when Ruby went to bed that night, she didn't feel like anything was okay.

* * *

It was raining the next day, and she took her red, strawberry umbrella with her as she went to school.

She waited for Weiss as she always did, but the white-haired girl never came rushing up behind her asking her to wait, and her family's cars never drove by either.

Ruby was forced to go alone, just as she had always feared since the first day of school.

Once she had arrived and shaken out her umbrella, she left it and her backpack in her cubby in the classroom before going over to her desk.

She didn't smile the entire morning, and just before lunch, she found out why.

There was an announcement made that asked the teachers to check their emails, and Ruby and the other children waited quietly as their teacher did just that. Ruby watched as her teacher put a hand on her mouth; she looked very sad, and it made Ruby scared.

Once she had read everything, the teacher faced her class and spoke softly.

"Everyone, I want you to listen well. It seems... something happened last night. A very bad thing, and very scary, too. One of the children at this school... there was an accident. We still don't know the full details, but she was hurt. And there are still bad things happening, which is why school is closing early today. Emails have been sent to your parents to come pick you up. Until then, please pack your things and wait for them." She sat down at her desk, suddenly looking much older than Ruby knew she was.

The other kids quietly did as they were told and got their things together, waiting for their names to be called on the speakers when their parents got there.

Ruby stumbled up to her teacher's desk, tears already streaming down her face as she asked the question she already knew the answer to.

"W-Who was the... who was the person who got hurt?" she sniffled.

The teacher looked at her with tired eyes, reaching out to pull a tissue for Ruby and handing it to her. Ruby buried her face into it when she heard the answer:

"Weiss Schnee."

Ruby wailed out loud for the next fifteen minutes until her uncle arrived with Yang, and the two of them came into the classroom to get her.

Yang's school had been cancelled as well, and she held Ruby in her arms tightly and carried her out to the car as their uncle held her backpack and umbrella.

Ruby sobbed all the way home, begging Yang to take her to Weiss' house, and it broke her sister's heart to listen to her like that. Yang held her tightly the entire time and apologized, telling Ruby that she couldn't do that.

Ruby didn't eat dinner that night, and Yang dressed her into her pajamas and held her hand, leading Ruby up the stairs. She let Ruby sleep in her bed that night, curling around her protectively as Ruby cried herself to sleep, whispering only one familiar word:

"_Weiss_..."

* * *

The next morning was misty and grey and a little warm.

School had been cancelled again, but Ruby and Yang still woke up to eat breakfast. Their uncle still had to go to work though, so he kissed them both and told them to be safe and call him if they needed him before he left.

Yang stayed with Ruby all day; wherever she went in the house and whatever she did, Yang was there. She held onto Ruby's hand and told her everything was going to be okay.

She hoped Ruby believed her.

After she had encouraged Ruby to eat lunch, she took her little sister into the living room, pulled her up onto the couch and laid down beside her, humming a few songs and telling her stories from the books she had memorized over the years until Ruby fell asleep.

Yang knew she was tired and worried about Weiss, and Ruby ended up sleeping through supper. Yang carried her up the stairs and back into her bed again. She was tired too, and even though it was still a bit early in the evening and the sun was still up, she wanted to go to sleep, just for a little bit.

Ruby woke just as her sister had fallen asleep next to her, and she noticed the tears that had dried on Yang's cheeks. Ruby wiped them away and squeezed her tightly before slipping out of bed.

She ran downstairs and put her shoes on, and her uncle saw her from where he was cleaning up in the kitchen and asked what she was doing. Ruby only replied, "I have to go see Weiss!" before she bolted for the door quicker than he could even get the chance to stop her.

She closed the door behind her and ran for Weiss' house, wide awake now after sleeping all day.

It only took her a minute to get there, but the house was almost like a different place than the last time she had walked Weiss home. There was no one in the front yard clipping hedges or planting flowers, and there were no lights on past the windows.

Ruby walked slowly up to the door, feeling nervous and scared and like she was going to throw up.

She went up the white stone stairs and waited for a moment before she finally found the courage to knock softly on the door.

At first, she thought no one had heard her, or maybe that no one was even home, but there were cars in the garage, and even if Weiss and her parents weren't home, Ruby knew there were always other people there to take care of the house.

Ruby was about to knock again when she heard movement from inside, and a second later, the handle turned.

The door opened, and a lady with thick, dark hair stood before her all dressed in black, and her eyes were drooping. Ruby felt she had seen her a few times before here and there on her visits to bring Weiss home, but now she could see the lady's gray eyes clearly, and they were full of sadness, more than her teacher's had been a few days ago. She looked down at Ruby and seemed to recognize her too, but she still looked very sad.

"Hello there," she said, kneeling down in front of Ruby.

"Hi..." she sniffled. "I-I want to see Weiss." She looked pleadingly up into the lady's eyes.

The woman sighed and shook her head.

"I'm afraid... something awful happened a few nights ago."

"W-What-" Ruby's heart was in her throat, and tears were already dripping down her cheeks. "What ha-happened, where's Weiss? Is she okay, my teacher said she got hurt-" she choked and started sobbing into her sleeve.

"I'm afraid that's the truth," the lady said. "You see... something terrible happened at her father's and mother's workplace. The White Fang attacked."

Ruby had heard that name before, mostly on the news and from her uncle when he talked to his friends on the phone sometimes.

They had used to be peaceful protestors for Faunus rights, but in the past few months they had started doing bad things.

Really bad things.

Ruby kept wiping her tears away as she looked up at the lady again. She continued in a sad voice:

"There was trouble at work for Mr. and Mrs. Schnee that day and..." Tears came to the lady's eyes, and Ruby whimpered out loud; it was never a good thing when grown-ups started to cry. The lady placed a hand on Ruby's shoulder and looked into her silver eyes. "Something... very bad happened. Your friend got hurt and needed to go to the hospital. She just came home a few hours ago, but she ran out of the house. We've been searching for her since then, but she hasn't been found or come home again-"

Ruby stepped away, having heard all she needed to.

Weiss was missing.

"I'll find her!" she promised, turning and running quickly down the stairs and across the lawn before the lady could even call her back.

Ruby had always been fast, but never before had she run faster than she did then.

She dashed past her own house again, continuing on down the sidewalk, moving so quickly that the white heads of the dandelions lost their fluff as she passed.

The sun was just vanishing behind the horizon, dyeing everything darker gray as she finally reached the playground.

As usual, no one else was there.

It was just Ruby and-

"_Weiss!_"

A small girl sat on the swings, wearing a black dress, her white hair loose and falling all the way down to her hips.

Ruby rushed to her, still sobbing as she stopped just a foot away from her.

She had wanted to hug her more than _anything_.

But when Weiss lifted her head, Ruby let out another choked sound.

Her left eye had been covered by a white patch, and the other wasn't the same bright blue Ruby remembered; it was a dull and lifeless color, like the gray mist that surrounded them now.

Ruby's knees were shaking as she whispered her name.

"Weiss..."

She was already crying so much, and she tried not to be so loud; she wanted to hear Weiss' voice.

When the older girl did finally seem to recognize her, her hands fell down from the chains of the swing and limply curled in her lap.

"Ru... by..." She shook her head from side to side and winced.

Ruby wasn't sure what to do. But she knew she _needed_ to hug Weiss, no matter what.

So she did, stepping up to her, shoes crunching softly in the wood chips. She wrapped her arms around Weiss tightly, like Yang did for her. Ruby hid her face in the side of Weiss' neck, feeling her tears dripping down onto the other girl's dress.

"Weiss... y-you're okay, you're... I thought..." she didn't want to think about it. "W-When they told me you... you got hurt I-I was so sc-scared, Weiss I'm so glad you're safe..." Her words died away into wailing cries of relief.

She cried for a long time, blubbering into Weiss' shoulder, never loosening her tight hug on her.

But Weiss didn't hug her back, and Ruby knew something was wrong.

Only once she had calmed down a little did she realize the clothes Weiss was wearing, and the woman back at her house, too...

Ruby pulled away, and she looked down into Weiss' good eye.

She knew, but she didn't want to hear it.

But Weiss needed to say it.

The white-haired girl drew a shuddering breath, and Ruby could tell she was holding back tears as she spoke:

"Papa... he said there was trouble at work. And he was gonna take us somewhere safe. He took us to a hideout but- …they broke in, they- it was so scary. I-I was trying to be quiet like Papa told me, but one of them found me and cut my eye..." She bit her lip, and Ruby was already sobbing, holding tighter to Weiss' sides as the girl continued:

"It hurt and I cried out, t-there was so much b-blood... and Mama came running in and she was fighting them, but Papa couldn't get there in time cause he was with Winter and they... they _killed her_..." she looked helplessly into Ruby's eyes, lost and scared and so, so helpless. "They killed Mama, Ruby. They killed her _right in front of me_-"

She slid off of the swing, and Ruby quickly caught her as they fell to the ground together. Ruby shook her head and crushed Weiss to her, refusing to believe it.

"No... n-no not... no, she was so... I was just... I just talked to her a few days ago..." she whimpered.

"Me, too..." Weiss whispered. "I'd just... I had just said goodnight to her a-and she said she would... see me in the morning..." she was shaking in Ruby's arms, much more than Ruby herself was, and she was scared Weiss was going to break. "They killed her and it's my fault..." she said quietly. "If I... if I was quiet, she wouldn't have heard me and come in to save me... she wouldn't have died-"

"No!" Ruby yelped. "Then _you_ would be dead, Weiss!" She squeezed her furiously. "Your mom did what my mom did for me! She saved you because she loves you! She'd never want you to die, never ever! And neither would anyone else..."

"_But why?!_" Weiss screamed into her shirt. "Why did they have to... there was so much blood... Ruby..."

Weiss wailed her name, and Ruby broke down in tears all over again.

"I-I'm s-sorry, Weiss. I wish those mean people didn't exist. I wish we could bring your mom back and mine too and everyone's moms and dads and family who died..."

Weiss was motionless in her arms, and Ruby was scared for her.

"Ruby... I can't... I can't live without her... _I can't._.."

"Yes you can..." Ruby promised her. "I did it, a-and it was hard and it hurt and I cried every day, but I lived without her. I have Yang and Uncle, and I know you have a sister and you have your dad and you have _me_, Weiss. Your mom wants you to live. I didn't know what to think, but that's what Yang told me. You h-have to live because that's what your mom wants..."

Small sounds came from Weiss' throat as she buried herself in Ruby's shoulder.

Ruby couldn't talk anymore, so she just held Weiss there as the sky got darker and the streetlights came on.

She wasn't sure how much time went by until she looked up at the big clock and saw it had been almost half an hour. She pulled back slightly to look at Weiss' face, having the girl look up at her.

"Weiss..." she murmured. "You should let everything out. It's not good to keep it inside."

She felt Weiss stiffen and shake her head.

"Papa said... a Schnee never cries..."

"_Weiss_..." Ruby pulled the girl close to her again. "I bet he's crying now, too. And your sister. Because you ran away and your mom's gone..." She heard Weiss sniff and take in another shaky breath. Ruby petted her hair and spoke softly. "You don't have to be a Schnee, then. When you're with me... you can be a Rose. You can have my name, okay? So... so you can cry, Weiss. It's okay..."

And the next thing she knew, Weiss was sobbing in her arms, throwing her head over Ruby's shoulder and burying her face and crying and crying.

Her voice rose up around the playground and echoed through the neighborhood. It got louder and softer, and sometimes it got stuck in her throat and then Weiss would cry even more.

The tears were soaking Ruby's shirt, but she was glad Weiss was letting herself cry. Yang had always told Ruby it was better to cry than not to, and Ruby could feel for herself it was true.

So Ruby cried with Weiss for a while, until the people looking for them – both of their fathers and sisters and some people from Weiss' house – found them.

Yang rushed to both of them as the adults talked, Weiss' father keeping hold of his other daughter.

All Ruby could think about was Weiss. She felt Yang's arms around her and silently begged her to hug Weiss more, because she knew she needed it.

They all stayed there, talking and crying and offering gentle words until at last they needed to go home.

Ruby and Yang let Weiss go when her father came over to scoop her up, and Ruby could tell he was crying, too. He brought Weiss and her sister Winter back to the car they had driven there in, and offered Ruby's family a ride home, but their uncle politely declined.

Ruby watched as the car drove off, then taking one of Yang's hands and one of her uncle's. They all walked home teary-eyed and talking softly.

Ruby managed the tiniest smile, just happy that she had gotten to see Weiss again.

But something felt wrong, and it wasn't just knowing Weiss' mother had been killed.

It was something Ruby couldn't describe, but she didn't like the feeling at all.

* * *

In the end, Weiss' father had arranged for them to move away.

They had only been in that town for less than a year, but he felt they needed to leave. His daughters were all he had left in the world now, and he didn't feel they were safe staying there.

He put in the order to move the day after the attack from the White Fang, and once his wife's private funeral had been held, they started packing.

Weiss didn't go to school again, and he withdrew her immediately. She was also not allowed to tell anyone they were moving, because he wanted to keep it quiet so as not to attracted more unwanted attention.

So after that night in the park, Weiss and Ruby never saw one another again in that town.

Weiss had at least been allowed to send her a letter, where she explained all of this among other things:

_I'm not allowed to tell you where I'm moving, but I won't ever be coming back to live in your town anymore._

_I'm sorry I couldn't say goodbye to you in person. I don't want you to be lonely every day in school. I'm going to miss you more than anything. I don't know if we'll ever see each other again, but I just want you to know you were my best friend._

_Thank you, Ruby._

And when she read the letter a few days later, Ruby was standing outside of Weiss' empty house with Yang beside her.

She fell to her knees and screamed and cried and begged for Weiss to come back.

But she never did.

* * *

. . .

Weiss' experience of the time when her mother died was the most traumatic event she had ever suffered in all her life until that point.

Which was understandably why she had subconsciously blocked it out, more or less erased it from her mind entirely.

And Ruby, too.

She never remembered going to school in that town, never remembered the cheerful girl who had taught her it was okay to cry.

Her father had been concerned the first time he mentioned "her friend Ruby" and Weiss had given him a blank stare and asked what he meant.

But once he had gotten a doctor's professional opinion, he realized this was better for his daughter as she grew older; if it was all too painful for her, he would much rather she just forget.

He never mentioned Ruby or his wife again - not to Weiss - and he made sure Winter didn't speak of them either if Weiss was within earshot.

He never reminded Weiss of the time she had changed schools for half a year.

And Weiss never asked.

Although, he _did_ keep track of the girl named Ruby Rose through covert contacts with her uncle. He made sure the girl knew - when she was old enough - that Weiss no longer remembered their friendship.

Ruby was a teenager by that point, so she could handle the pain better; she understood it was for Weiss' sake, and she would much rather be forgotten than cause Weiss more agony.

Plus, every once in a while, her uncle would conveniently slip up to her about his otherwise-private conversations on the phone with an untraceable number.

Because of these things, Ruby knew that Weiss was doing well, wherever she was.

The years she was with Yang in school were her best, though even when she was alone at Signal Academy, she made her own group of friends.

It was when by some guiding fates she was admitted into Beacon two years early when her life took a certain turn...

* * *

. . .

Among Ruby's packed bags that day was the letter Weiss had left her almost seven years ago.

Their uncle had told Yang that Weiss would be attending Beacon with them, but it was left as a surprise for Ruby.

That was why, the second Yang saw that familiar white figure heading their way as soon as she and Ruby had arrived outside the Academy for the first time, she bolted to leave Ruby alone.

Ruby had cried after her, but the second she fell onto the ground - onto someone's luggage - she knew why Yang had gone.

She looked up to a familiar voice, scolding as she chastised Ruby for knocking over her things.

Her injury had healed all except for a scar, but her mist-blue eyes and snow-white hair were exactly the same.

It had been _so_ hard for Ruby not to jump up and hug her then, _so_ hard for her to keep up the act of never having met Weiss before.

But it was for her old friend's wellbeing.

Still, that didn't stop Ruby from deliberately finding her in the forest and choosing her as her four-year partner.

She had lost Weiss once, and she wasn't about to let that happen ever again.

* * *

. . .

Somewhere along the lines, Weiss remembered her.

Considering the things that happened at Beacon and within the limits of the team's room, mention of the White Fang came up one too many times.

One evening, one memory had led to another, and the second Weiss remembered everything, Ruby could see the clarity in her eyes even before Weiss stumbled over to her and pulled her in with only one word on her lips:

"_Ruby_..."

The younger girl was crying even before she wrapped her arms around her partner.

"I knew you'd remember me, Weiss," she chuckled.

She knew a lot of painful things came along with the memories of her, of their shared past, but she was glad she could be there for Weiss as it all flooded her mind.

She held her for a long while that night where they sat on the heiress' bed, and Yang explained things to Blake in soft murmurs.

After that night, there were no more secrets between any of them, and that also included their affections.

Ruby no longer had to feel guilty about her crush on Weiss, and the heiress no longer had to feel that stifling pressure in her chest whenever she saw the girl.

She kissed Ruby fully, embracing her in every sense of the word, and Ruby reciprocated entirely.

And she said nothing when Weiss started to cry happily in her arms.

* * *

. . .

. . .

Years later, when all had been said and done, the lessons taught and learned, the battles fought and won, in was a day of celebration.

The walls of the building were strewn with banners, the tables covered in trays of food and certain special cupcakes.

Ruby's dress was crimson, and a white rose rested in her hair as she waited anxiously at the altar.

Roses of red, white, and pink decorated the entire room, fresh and lively and sweet, carrying the scent on every breath of air.

But the second Weiss emerged on her father's arm, all else paled in comparison to her beauty.

Strands of her silvery hair hung loose down to her collar from the red rose that was tucked in by her temple, her white dress flowing over her incomparably beautiful figure, the diaphanous train trailing behind her slowly as Ruby felt her heart pound with anticipation.

Weiss' eyes were bright and blue, and the smile on her lips was flawless just like the rest of her, but somehow became even more so when those pools of blue met silver.

Friends and teammates and sisters huddled nearby, Blake constantly wiping Yang's tears because she didn't want to blink and end up missing a second of this day.

Blake kissed her wife's cheek, murmuring soft words into her ear as she rested her head on Yang's shoulder and sighed blissfully. The two of them had personally put a great deal of planning into the event, and it was finally coming to fruition.

This day was all any of them had ever wanted, and it was impossibly difficult to realize it was really, _finally_ happening.

Weiss' father and sister had made sure this wedding was the biggest deal on all of Remnant, and Yang hadn't held herself back with preparations, either.

She sniffled loudly as she hugged Blake to her side.

"That's her. My baby sis. She's all grown up now..." she smiled proudly.

Blake nodded and leaned into her warmly.

Weiss left her father at the aisle and stepped slowly up the stairs to the altar, holding the bouquet of red and white roses with delicacy.

Ruby was already crying by the time Weiss stopped in front of her, mumbling about how she was impossibly perfect, beyond dreamlike.

Weiss took her hands with one of her own and hushed her gently as they listened to the ceremonial words that were spoken.

When it was time for Ruby to say her vows, she was sure to mention a particular instance, fighting to keep her voice steady past the tears that consumed her.

"Weiss..." she chuckled softly, squeezing her hands. "Do you... remember... when we were young... you told me a Schnee never cries..."

She briefly nodded toward Weiss' father and sister amongst the crowd who unashamedly had water dripping down their cheeks. When she looked back to Weiss, she did as well.

"Yes..." Weiss murmured.

"Well..." Ruby stepped up to her, nodding to the priest, indicating for the final words to be spoken. "This will be... the last time you ever cry as a Schnee. Because..."

She cupped Weiss' cheeks, and the room held its breath.

"Because now... you're a _Rose_."

They kissed, long and full and loving.

They cried, and the world cried with them.

And the beginning of a new life together blossomed.

* * *

**A/N: How long have I been wanting to write this scene? It's about time.**

**Please review!**


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